Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened

Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened is an adventure game developed by Frogwares and published in 2006 for Microsoft Windows. The game follows an original plotline as Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. John H. Watson investigate a series of strange disappearances related to the Cthulhu Mythos.

The third in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series of adventure games developed by Frogwares, The Awakened was preceded in 2002 by Sherlock Holmes: Mystery of the Mummy and in 2004 by Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Silver Earring. This is the first game in the series to tackle supernatural elements such as the Cthulhu Mythos, the previous two games having fairly traditional (albeit original) Holmesian plots.

In 2008, a remastered version was released that offers the ability to play in a third-person perspective mode in addition to the first-person perspective. The version also features improved graphics and changes to the help system, this the first (and so far only) "Sherlock Holmes" game to get an M (Mature 17+) rating the ERSB. The remastered version became available on Steam on August 6, 2009.

Since its release in 2007, Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened has attracted a huge worldwide audience, earning high marks from reviewers and consumers alike. Regarded by many as one of the best uses of a license (earning GameSpot's "Best Use of a License" award in 2007)– The Awakened is one of the key titles in the adventure genre in the past several years.

Plot

On September 6, 1894, Sherlock Holmes stares out of his window, bored that he has no case to solve that is worthy of his talents. No sooner, he learns that a young Maori manservant, who works for Captain Stenwick, has disappeared. Holmes quickly deduces not only that the boy has been kidnapped, but also that two men—one significantly larger than the other—were responsible. A few leads point to the docks by the Thames, and there, he and Watson learn that there have been other very similar kidnappings going on. Further investigation leads them to an abandoned temple, where inside is a sacrificial altar occupied by a bloody and tortured corpse with serpents slithering out in a gruesome manner. They also find opium with morphine, and this discovery steers them to Switzerland, after finding a crate labelled "Black Edelweiss Institute".

The Black Edelweiss Institute turns out to be a Swiss mental asylum, and Holmes and Watson hatch a little plan to find out more about the place. Donning a costume and pretending to be someone else, Holmes gets himself admitted into the asylum. After escaping from his cell, he finds further proof of drug trafficking as well as the extent of Dr. Gygax's misdeeds. Not only has the doctor been performing dangerous experiments on powerless victims in the asylum, but also that he is part of a cult awaiting the arrival of the 'One'. To escape from Gygax and the asylum, Holmes uses Moriarty as a distraction (who is a patient in weak condition, having survived the fall of Reichenbach).

Their next stop is New Orleans (which was mentioned in a telegram to Gygax), where Holmes and Watson hear about Davy, a lad who has not been seen for five days. They find him, though mute due to psychological trauma. After Watson treats him, Davy writes on a chalkboard a series of numbers, which turn out to be co-ordinates pointing to a lighthouse on a Scottish coastline. There, Holmes and Watson have a final confrontation with the Cthulhu-following cultists and leader Lord Rochester, whose fortune finances the sect.

Holmes managed to stop the summoning, but a raging storm appears, whom Rochester felt as the coming of Cthulhu. Holmes tries to stop Rochester, but he jumps off to his death into the raging sea below.

Gameplay

The Awakened was the first Frogwares title to allow gameplay to take place in an entirely real-time 3D landscape and from a first-person perspective, losing the pre-rendered backgrounds of its predecessor.Like other Sherlock Holmes games by Frogwares it gives an open world environment in every location that can hide clues and interact with NPC. The inventory system saves all objects, documents and map locations for later use and can also be used to combine objects. All conversations with characters in the game are completed through linear cut scenes for which you cannot direct the subjects at any point. Some of these conversations are triggered merely by clicking on a character, while others require you to complete a series of tasks before they will happen on their own.While most of Holmes’ conclusions in the game come from gathering random clues found around the crime scenes, you will have the opportunity to take evidence back to Holmes’ famous 221 B Baker Street flat and examine it under a microscope or put it through some chemical tests. You will also have some puzzles to solve throughout the game like picking combination locks, deciphering cryptic messages and even solving a clock puzzle to open a safe.

The game can viewed from a first or third person perspective and it provides you with an icon to indicate what actions Holmes can take within his world like pick up or talk. Holmes can move around via the mouse or the keyboard and his movement is completely free within the 3D space. While the game does give you a fair amount of space to move around in each area, there are cases where Holmes must move to a new area screen or change his view of the street in order to move where you want him to, but in those cases, an icon will show a set of footprints to indicate the change.

Although the game had adopted a view popularized by the first-person shooter genre, it retains the point-and-click aspect of most adventure games, giving the player the ability to complete the game using the mouse alone.

Throughout the investigation one will meet more than sixty characters with who can be interacted with freely. Hundreds of clues and objects will need to be scrutinised and utilised for the investigation to be solved. From the most logical deduction down to the smallest detail, the decor and textures offer the player a true feeling of living the role. Cities and places recreate environments from the end of the 19th Century

Remastered Version

The remastered version allows for gameplay in a third-person perspective, similar to other Frogwares titles, such as Sherlock Holmes: Secret of the Silver Earring and Dracula: Origin.

Updated features of Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened Remastered Edition include: • Two view modes - the original 1st-person mode, along with the new 3rd-person mode, which brings a fresh new perspective to the game. • A new Help Bar which allows players in the 3rd-person mode to instantly discover all the available actions on the screen. • An updated help system that offers gamers step-by-step solutions to the game's puzzles. • Improved graphics which feature new lighting, HD effects, shaders, shadows and new animations.

Reception

Reviews have been mostly positive and was critially acclaimed both by the critics and consumers alike.Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened received a metascore of 72 out of 100, collated from 28 critics, and 7.2 from users at Metacritic.^[7]

Gamespot dubbed it as "An engaging story, logical puzzles, and nice visuals combine to make The Awakened a great adventure game". Saying that the only negative review of it is because you can't skip cutscenes.^[8]

IGN gave it 8.1 score based on 12 critic reviews, saying it as what "This is how adventure games should be made"^[9]

Award

The game earned GameSpot's "Best Use of a License" award in 2007.^[10] It was also nominated for IGN's "Best PC Adventure Game of 2007."^[11]

See also

• All-Consuming Fire
• Shadows Over Baker Street

References

External links

• Official website
• Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened at MobyGames
• Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened at the Internet Movie Database
• Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened at GameSpot